1. Technical Field
The invention relates to a bicycle tire, in particular for mountain bikes.
2. Related Art
There are various types of bicycle, including road bikes (optionally that are electric-assisted), mountain bikes, especially intended for practicing amateur or competitive sport in the discipline known as “downhill” which essentially involves descending, “enduro” which involves as much ascending as descending on circuits, or else “cross-country”.
The issue with mountain bike tires, in particular for practicing enduro and downhill, is that a very large compromise is required between grip properties and handling properties without having an adverse effect on wear properties. Indeed, grip and handling are essential to allow the rider to control their bike and their trajectory; thus, for example, too great a stiffness would cause the tires to slip on obstacles such as pebbles, or even to bounce back if the hysteresis is too low, and cause the rider to lose control of their bike.
Thus, it is known practice to use, in the elastomer matrix of such tires, optionally in a blend with natural rubber, stirene/butadiene copolymers (SBR) having a high Tg (greater than or equal to −65° C.) and plasticizers; however, the content of plasticizers is limited so as to preserve the wear properties of the tires, even though it is not sought to obtain wear performance which is as high for this type of tire as for road bike tires, for example, or for cross-country bike tires.